The draft, as a descendant of the militia and the fyrd, exists to levy troops for military purposes only. It's not there to provide jobs to youths, to instill values, to beautify the environment, or to increase social cohesion. It exists -- when it does -- to provide a surge of man-power for the enterprise of breaking things and killing people.
Well said. I'm all for the draft being an option in a time of military emergency, not as a back door to turning America into a modern Sparta or introducing something akin to mandatory AmeriCorps service. America wasn't founded as a regimented society under the control of the central government. We may need the draft again, but certainly not for the sake of Iraq, where the administration's goal is greater Iraqi self-reliance. This is just a transparent political ploy by Rangel, one which his fellow Democrats (especially those who fought against the draft in the Vietnam era) should be ashamed of.
LOL -- while the action is certainly shameful, I doubt that the Democrats are capable of feeling shame.